Pre-orders can be absolutely vital to book creators for a book’s success. Help your favorite kid lit creators and give yourself the future gift of reading by:
Pre-ordering from your favorite Indie Bookstore right at their front counter or by supporting them through Bookshop.org
Taking advantage of seasonal pre-order sales like the one happening now at Barnes & Noble
Letting your local library know the titles you’d love to check out just as soon as they hit the shelves
(PS I’m not affiliated or getting any commissions, just a huge fan of supporting authors & illustrators however we can!!)
Here are some picture books I’m anxiously awaiting…
July 2025




Tiny T. Rex and the First-Day Oopsies: A Back-to-School Book - Jonathan Stutzman & Jay Fleck - Chronicle
The Zombees - Justin Colón & Kaly Quarles - Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Wild Everywhere - Katya Balen & Gill Smith - Candlewick Press
Dawn: Watch the World Awaken - Marc Martin - Candlewick Press




This Year, A Witch! - Zoey Abbott - Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books
The King of Books - Gina Perry - Feiwel & Friends
The Boy who Became a Parrot - Wolverton Hill & Laura Carlin - Enchanted Lion
The Secret Life of Clouds: And other Wonderful Weather Forms - Moira Butterfield & Vivian Mineker - Happy Yak
August 2025




Five Little Friends: A Collection of Finger Rhymes - Sean Taylor & Fiona Woodcock - Candlewick Press
Menudo Sunday - María Dolores Águila & Erika Meza - Penguin Young Readers
Gilbert and the Ghost - Heather Pierce Stigall & Jess Mason - Augsburg Fortress, Publishers
Itty Bitty Betty Blob Makes a Splash - Constance Lombardo & Micah Player - Astra Publishing House




The Little Ghost Quilt’s Winter Surprise - Riel Nason & Byron Eggenschwiler - Tundra Book Group
Wonderfully Wild: A Book About Manners - Justine de Lagausie & Valeria Petrone - Little Brown Books for Young Readers
My Abuela is a Bruja - Mayra Cuevas & Lorena Alvarez Gómez - Random House Children’s
Fox and the Mystery Letter - Alex G Griffiths - Frances Lincoln Children’s Books




Squirrel and Bird - Laura Baker & Stacey Thomas - Tiger Tales
The Slightly Spooky Tale of Fox and Mole - Cecilia Heikkilä & translated by Polly Lawson - Floris Books
Tiger, It's Snowing - Daishu Ma - Post Wave Children’s Books | Chronicle Kids
Finding Forgiveness - Rebecca Gardyn Levington & Diana Mayo - Farrar, Straus and Giroux




Aggie and the Ghost - Matthew Forsythe - Simon & Schuster / Paula Wiseman
When Autumn Comes - Ekaterina Trukhan - Nosy Crow
Tomatoes on Trial: The Fruit v. Vegetable Showdown - Lindsay H. Metcalf & Edwin Fotheringham - Astra Publishing House
The Other Side of the Rocks - Nahid Kazemi - Enchanted Lion
September 2025




If We Were Dogs - Sophie Blackall - Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Fly Like a Bird - Olga Ptashnik - Eerdmans Young Readers
The Witch in the Tower - Júlia Sardà - Candlewick Press
The Search for Our Cosmic Neighbors - Chloe Savage - Candlewick Press




The Last Plum: A Mini and Milo Book - Venita Dimos & Natashia Curtin - Walker Books Australia
Unicorn Post - Emma Yarlett - Candlewick Press
Dear Acorn (Love Oak): Letter Poems to Friends - Joyce Sidman & Melissa Sweet - Harper Collins
One Can Be - Pat Zietlow Miller & Annie Cron - Augsburg Fortress, Publishers




All the World's a Stage: Peter Pan: A pop-out sound adventure - J. M. Barrie & Ella Beech - Magic Cat
Piggy Bank Saves the Day - Kimberly Wilson & Mark Hoffman - Page Street Publishing
Books on Bikes - F. Isabel Campoy, Theresa Howell & Brizida Magro - Harper Collins
Whodonut? A Holiday Mystery - Josh Funk & Brendan Kearney - Union Square & Co




Outside In and the Inside Out: A Story About Arnold Lobel - Emmy Kastner - Penguin Young Readers
Make it Go Away - Helen Docherty & Taylor Barron - Watkins Media
Bear in the Air - Allison Wortche & Cat Min - Random House Children’s
Speak Your Heart: A Coco and Bear Story - Apryl Stott - Beach Lane Books




Hansel & Gretel - Stephen King & Maurice Sendak - Harper Collins
Lost Evangeline - Kate DiCamillo & Sophie Blackall - Candlewick
E is for Edward - The Edward Gorey Charitable Trust & Gregory Hischak - Workman Publishing Company
The World Entire: A True Story of an Extraordinary World War II Rescue - Elizabeth Brown & Melissa Castrillon - Chronicle




Fight for the Right to Read: Samuel Wilbert Tucker and the 1939 Sit-Down Strike for Library Reading Equality - Jeff Gottesfeld and Michelle Y. Green & Kim Holt - Creston Books
Wolf in the City - Rachel Tilda Wolf - Scallywag Press
The Street Where Santa Lives - Harriet Howe & Julia Christians - Tiger Tales
The Very Fine Clock - Muriel Spark & Edward Gorey - Transit Children's Editions




Emmie Builds Something New - Marjorie Crosby-Fairall - Red Comet Press
Go Go Dodo! - Huw Lewis Jones & Fred Blunt - Tiger Tales
The Monster in the Lake - Leo Timmers - Gecko Press
Ducky the Spy - Sean E Avery - Walker Books Australia / Candlewick




Some Days I’m the Wind - Rebecca Gardyn Levington & Dinara Mirtalipova - Barefoot Books
I Will Not be Scared - Jean-François Sénéchal & Simone Rea - Milky Way Picture Books
Look Up - Azul López - Transit Children's Editions
Gather Grateful - Megan Litwin & Alexandra Finkeldey - Candlewick




Zombie and Brain are Friends - Stephanie V.W. Lucianovic & Laan Cham - Bloomsbury USA
Clovis Meets His Match - Katelyn Aronson & Benji Williams - Page Street Publishing
Story Snacks - Kes Gray & Ruby Wright - DK
This is How You Know - Kristen W Larson & Cornelia Li - Little Brown Books for Young Readers
October 2025




While We Wait - Bee Johnson - Henry Holt & Co
The Boy, the Troll & The Chalk - Anne Booth & David Litchfield - Candlewick
Don't Eat Me! The Almost True Story of Belladonna - Kate Finney & Esmé Shapiro - Enchanted Lion
King Winter’s Birthday - Jonathan Freedland & Emily Sutton - Steerforth Press




The Adventures of Cipollino - Gianni Rodari & Dasha Tolstikova - Enchanted Lion
Don’t Eat Eustace - Lian Cho - Harper Collins
Sammy Feels Shy - Tom Percival - Bloomsbury USA
Steam Train Dream Train: Next Stop Christmas - Sherri Dusky Rinker & AG Ford - Chronicle




Always Remember: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm - Charlie Mackesy - Penguin Publishing Group
I'm Very Busy: A (Nearly Forgotten) Birthday Book - Oliver Jeffers - Penguin Young Readers Group
Our Islands - Yuval Zommer - Thames & Hudson
A Field Guide to Winter: Play and Learn in Nature - Gabby Dawnay & Dorien Brouwers - Thames & Hudson
November 2025




A Quick Trip to the Store - Sam Wedelich - Random House Children’s
The Coziest Place on the Moon - Maria Popova & Sarah Jacoby - Enchanted Lion
Hogbert - Briony May Smith - Candlewick
Forests - Nell Cross Beckerman & Kalen Chock - Scholastic, Inc




The Snowball Fight - Beth Ferry & Tom Lichtenheld - Harper Collins
Earl & Worm: Snow Problem & Other Stories - Greg Pizzoli - Random House Children’s
How to Find a Yeti - Matt Hunt - Nosy Crow
Abominable Snow Dancer - Steph Lau - Penguin Young Readers
December 2025




The Language of Birds - Jon-Erik Lappano & Zach Manbeck - Random House Children’s
Our Love - Fatima Ordinola - Post Wave Children’s Books | Chronicle Kids
Whooo is Still Awake? - Brigette Barrager - Random House Children’s
We Always Had Wings - Jess X Snow - Random House Children’s
January 2026




Worm and Butterfly Are Friends Always - Kaz Windness - Simon Spotlight
Cats in Pants - Naomi Tipping - Rizzoli
Bored - Felicita Sala - Candlewick
How to Have a Thought: A Walk with Charles Darwin - Nicholas Day & Hadley Hooper - Candlewick
February 2026




Rumplestiltskin - Mac Barnett & Carson Ellis - Scholastic, Inc
I'm Busy - Michael Ian Black & Debbie Ridpath Ohi - Simon & Schuster
Whirby - Molly Harris & Jacob Souva - Harper Collins
I'm So Happy You're Here: A Celebration of Library Joy - Mychal Threets & Lorraine Nam - Random House Children’s
March 2026




Loops - Jashar Awan - Simon & Schuster
The Boy with Big, Big Energy - Britney Winn Lee & Jacob Souva - Augsburg Fortress, Publishers
Navigating Night - Julie Leung & Angie Kang - Random House Children’s
Little Passenger - Deirdre Sullivan & Jessica Love - Candlewick
Please keep in mind this is a very truncated list, as there are so many fantastic books coming out this year. I’ll be adding to this list as the year progresses and more books catch my eye. Make sure to let me know which one you’re most excited for in comments!
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